Life is a Highway

I believe that it was Rascal Flatts that sang "Life is a Highway." My grandson got me hooked on this song after we watched the animated movie "Cars" for the umpteenth time! Whether or not you like the song or the movie the truth is that life is a highway.

We are all on a journey. Now you may be sitting in the same house you were born and raised in and thinking, "life is no journey for me." But life is a journey and we're all on it. We are all traveling toward a destination that is out of this world. Your body may not be moving but your spirit is. The question is what direction are you traveling in? Are you going forward or are you falling behind? Are you headed toward a heavenly home our have you settled for where you are?

I'm a wanderer. I get bored easily and I don't like the status quo. I used to think this was a problem until I heard the story behind the phrase "wild goose chase." The early Celtic Christians called the Holy Spirit the Wild Goose. When they felt the Spirit moving them to take a pilgrimage or go on a mission they called it a "Wild Goose chase." As history has shown the Celtic Christians were not afraid to take up their walking sticks or hop in a boat and go wherever the Spirit led them. They were a restless people who sought out adventure and God used that to spread the Gospel throughout the world. I guess I can attribute my restlessness to my celtic heritage, but I can also attribute it to God trying to get me to move out of my comfort zones and spread the Gospel around the world.

You don't have to travel the world to go on a Wild Goose chase! You can go out your front door and find an adventure. The key is to hit the bricks and spread the Gospel. We Christians cannot afford to stay cloistered in our homes, churches, and monastaries. It is time to hit the highway and move forward in our journey. Stagnation leads to atrophy. Many of my brothers and sisters in Christ are atrophying away.

Is the Wild Goose calling you? Are you feeling restless? Maybe it is time to change course and set out on a spiritual journey. As Mark Twain once said, "Throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor, catch the trade winds in your sails."

Fr. Rick